Foreign Minister Penny Wong has labelled the abduction of Australian children in Japan “heartbreaking” as Tokyo begins reforms to a century-old sole custody system that allowed parents to legally kidnap their kids. In her first interview on the issue since The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age and 60 Minutes revealed last year that more than 80 Australian children had been abducted by their Japanese parent since 2004, Wong said the situation was “incredibly distressing”. Foreign Minister Penny Wong Credit: Alex Ellinghausen “I think a parent’s heartbreak always cuts deep,” she said.
“For anyone who meets them and talks with them and understands it – if you’re a parent yourself, you always think about how you would feel in that situation.” Wong said she was determined to lift Australia’s advocacy following the revelations by this masthead over the past three years , culminating in Australia leading nine foreign governments lobbying Japan to change its laws in an unprecedented intervention in the domestic jurisdiction of a close diplomatic, military and economic partner. In May, the Japanese parliament passed laws that will allow parents to seek joint custody of their children for the first time.
The sole custody laws were designed to protect women suddenly fleeing domestic violence in the early 20th century but have been used for decades by Japanese men and women to cut one parent off from all contact with their children, including details of their health,.